“Just for today, I will not worry.” The second Reiki Precept. Like the first Precept about anger, this one encourages us to be fully present as a clear conduit for the flow of healing Reiki energy.
What is worry but another name for fear? Do we ever worry that things will turn out the way we want them to? No, just that they won’t.
We worry when we feel we’ve lost control, when we fear the unknown, and in situations when we face a decision or difficulty and don’t know how it’s going to turn out. We’re anticipating that something unfortunate will happen in the future. Worry creates anxiety, that eating-away at your insides sick feeling.
Paradoxically, when we worry, we’re actually pulling energy away from our desired outcome and feeding it toward what we’re afraid will happen. Working against ourselves.
The Buddhist proverb on worry is, “If the problem can be solved, why worry? If the problem cannot be solved, worrying will do you no good.” [Śāntideva]
It’s easy and frustrating to tell ourselves or someone else, “Don’t worry.” Or in musician Bobby McFerrin’s words, “Don’t worry, be happy.” Yeah, right. Telling ourselves to not worry only adds to the stress of worry—now we worry about worrying.
I asked the animals for more specific guidance, and sensed splash, bubbles, sparkles of sunlight through water, movement. Otter popped up and said, “Why worry? It’s all a game. Be flexible. Find joy in each moment, even when the unexpected happens. When you worry, you get stiff and solid. That blocks the flow. Worry can make you sick inside, and that’s no fun.
“Be in gratitude for the abundance that surrounds us. I trust that there will be enough fish for me and my family. If I worry, it drives the fish away and we are hungry. That’s no fun, either. Life is a gift, and everything in it. Just relax and enjoy it.
“Have courage, be strong, set and follow your intentions. Watch as I turn and swim through the water. I waste no energy. When I am hunting, I am focused, and I eat. Be sleek like me. Point all your energy in the direction you want to go. It’s more fun that way.”
Splash! Ripples of water spread out where a moment ago Otter had been.
Next, Rabbit hopped into my meditation: “Ah, fear,” Rabbit said. “We tremble. We’re gentle and are prey. Our whiskers twitch, sensing, always alert. Walk towards what you fear. Face it. What you fear will not go away. It will linger outside your burrow while you tremble, waiting for you to emerge so it can pounce on you. Ask yourself, what is it you fear? The great unknowing? It is so human, to want to know everything. You can only prepare as best you can, stay alert, watchful, and be ready to run if you need to—lest you become Fear’s dinner.”
Confronting fear and worry brought Boar to mind. I heard him snort, “What!”
“Would you share your thoughts about worry with me?”
“Worry? Confront it head on, do your groundwork, focus, and then go forward.” Boar continued, “To worry is to scatter your energy. Prepare, commit, put your head down and move toward your goal. You can’t control what is beyond your reach, but you can prepare for it. Prepare for the unexpected. Focus. Set intention. When you worry, you send mixed signals. You feed energy to what you fear. I didn’t get to be this big by scattering my energy all over the field. I know what I want and I go for it. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. So be it.” Snort. A hoof stomps. Boar’s head wags from side to side.
Rabbit, Otter, and Boar give good guidance: Otter reminds us that when we’re worrying, it’s time to take a break, have some fun, and then focus. Rabbit reminds us to confront our fear, for it won’t go away. Boar reminds us to set our intention and direct all our energy toward it. All say that when we worry, we divert our energy away from our goal and toward what we fear. Worry is a distraction.
We invite worry when our head/mind speaks more strongly than our heart, when we have doubt about the outcome. Prepare as best you can, and then move forward. When we make a mistake, worrying (fretting, stewing) will not fix it. We can only acknowledge and own it, apologize or make amends, and move forward. When worry creeps in anyway, breathe. Let yourself ground deep into the earth. Invite the earth’s energy to flow through with each breath you take, and open your heart. The worry will dissipate. Call on the animals. They are always willing to help.
Just for today, I will not worry.
By: Rev. Nancy Schluntz
Rev. Nancy Schluntz is a SARA practitioner member and animal communicator. As an Animal Chaplain, she offers pet loss bereavement counseling and facilitates a support group. She offers for Reiki for animals (and their people) who are approaching the end of life and as part of her intuitive communication readings. Nancy also offers Reiki to animals at the wildlife rehabilitation center where she volunteers.
Sharing will enrich everyone with more knowledge. ~Ana Monnar
Two of my newer students asked for some guidance as we began the afternoon. So, we went together to offer Reiki to Smokey and Buddy who were sharing a small pasture near the house. These two sweet horses along with some other sweet spirits taught my students about just “Being Reiki” and letting go of what might happen. We sat outside the fence overlooking the countryside. After I guided us in creating a Reiki space and inviting Smokey and Buddy to join us, we sat in the beautiful healing energy. Smokey and Buddy moved around a bit as they grazed, but stayed a few feet away sharing the energy with us.
And at one point, I happened to look over to my right where Sadie, a very sweet donkey, had been grazing nearby; she was looking at us very intently and quietly connecting with us. After we finished, the owner of the sanctuary, Jody, shared that as she was taking pictures, she noticed that the cats in the house had all congregated at the window just behind us; they too were connecting with us. Wow, what a great learning experience for all of us. If we create a Reiki space and invite all of the animals to connect with us, we are able to assist not only those that we intend to work with, but also any others who may choose to join us.
For our second practice session, I was inspired to spend time with the horses in the barn. Yoda and Mikey were in their stalls next to each other, and Cziello was across the aisle. I had worked with Yoda in the past, so I stood in the middle of the aisle facing Yoda and invited all three horses to join me in the Reiki space. Yoda knew why I was there and stayed at the front of his stall often reaching his head out toward me; he was very sweet and open to the energy. Just as I was about to move closer to Yoda, he moved back in his stall, and I immediately felt something warm over my left shoulder. I looked back, and there was Cziello extending his head as far as he could toward me, almost brushing his muzzle against me. I turned around to face Cziello and moved right in front of him placing my hands under his muzzle. He continued looking directly at me; he would push his muzzle into my hands; he would lift his head and smile; and he would cock his head to one side. I just stood there mirroring his movements and sharing the moment with him. Thank you to Cziello for this wonderful experience and for sharing such a beautiful and peaceful connection with me.
In January of 2013 my two sons and I adopted a beautiful little Blue Merle Sheltie named Gerry. The day we picked him up from the shelter he was so timid that he ran and hid under the desk when he saw us. It took a while, but finally we managed to coax him into the kennel with some treats. My oldest son took him to the car and he headed home with us, his new forever family.
Back in the fall I was in my kitchen preparing to go out for the day. When I turned toward the window I was startled to see a full grown moose staring in at me! He was beautiful against the autumn leaves, sporting a full rack and looking for all the world like he belonged there. My kitchen window is half a floor up so you can get an idea of his height.
I wasn’t looking for a dog. I was quite happy and content with seven unique cats. (Yes, you could say I live in a cathouse). I certainly didn’t anticipate a little dog to come into my life, teaching me to look at my Reiki practice and The Precepts in ever new ways. But let me back up a bit.
It seems like almost every day I am getting these emails from people I know who are working tirelessly to stop the massive removal of these magnificent animals from their homelands. Wild horses have roamed our countryside for hundreds of year. Yet now, under the direction of the government, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is staging nationwide roundups of wild horses so they can turn over the land to cattle ranchers. While I have never witnessed a roundup live, friends of mine have. I have seen harrowing pictures and video and heard tragic stories. Once they are captured, the lucky horses are saved by rescue groups and sent to sanctuaries. They will never again roam free, but they are safe. The unlucky ones are sent to feedlots where they are held in small pens indefinitely or possibly shipped to slaughter.
Charlie, a handsome white cat with bright jade eyes, came into my family’s life last summer. His owner, an aged German lady named Millicent, refused to be taken to the hospital by the town ambulance service unless she was given assurance that her cat would be taken care of. The managers of the service, Lisa and Jerry, both animal lovers, agreed to take care of the kitty and went to the house to feed him daily. But neither of them could take another animal into their homes. Looking for a solution, Lisa turned to my partner Carol, a part-time medic, for ideas. The upshot was that Carol and I agreed to foster the cat and adopt him if Millicent didn’t return home.. We dubbed him Charlie, got him a collar and tag, and welcomed him into our home. He immediately took over and proved to be a people lover, if not a lover of our other cats. Several weeks later, Charlie had a forever home with us.
8 years have passed since I rescued my beloved dog, named Deeds, from the Tulsa Animal Shelter. Inspired by him, and the benefits of offering Reiki to shelter animals, this time I returned to teach my very first SARA Level I Reiki & Animal Reiki class.
Pete lives at a barn near Green Bay, WI, with a wonderful family, about 10 horses and a couple of mini horses, a place where he receives a lot of love and attention. Pete’s life has not always been so idyllic. Pete came to live with Diane from a place where he was most likely abused and not well-cared for. It seems that Pete received little attention; he was kept in his stall most of the time; and his stall was rarely cleaned. These people really did not want Pete, and luckily for him, Diane was willing to give him a loving home. As a result of his past, Pete had lost trust in humans and responded very cautiously and fearfully when people came near him or tried to ride or interact with him.
Seeing Caesar the tiger strong and healthy’ still pacing, but chuffing and purring each time he reached the fence where we were standing. He seemed to rub his face against the fence to let us know how content he was. He did not mention feeling stressed about the noise of children to M at all this time;
When I went in with Carol to see Princess the Camel I was in awe of her size and a little intimidated! I have always loved camels and could not believe I was going to see one that close and with no fence! When Carol walked right up to her I was shocked because I had no idea she actually can touch her! Princess was lying down with her legs tucked under her and she still was the size of a car to me! Princess reached up her massive head and began to rub her huge head against Carol’s body while Carol rubbed her. I stood at a distance and was more than happy to just be there, but when Carol said I could come up to Princess and actually touch her I thought it was too good to be true! To actually have contact with such a huge, beautiful creature was humbling..that she would actually allow a stranger to touch her. I wondered if she remembered our animal communication session the last time I saw her! I told M that if she had stood up I would have passed out from sheer excitement of being that close to her!!!
Another highlight was when we were allowed to go into the inner cage of 2 of the mountain lions. The male (non dominant one) named Lance immediately ran up to the fence where M was kneeling down and began rubbing his face against the fence and making a lot of happy noises, He immediately began telling her how happy he was and how wonderful it was to be fed and that he is not hungry anymore, on and on..Then the dominant female Gwen came up – she had been hanging back as would be her dominant nature to check things out from a distance at first before approaching. When she came up to M she did the same face rubbing on the fence, but the male got a little possessive of his conversation he was having with M and slapped the dominant female a few times. It got a little tense and we backed away. It was amazing how the male was so happy to be able to find someone who could hear him talk that he was willing to show aggression against the dominant lion! He kept saying to M “oh, you can hear me?” and then told her how happy he was over and over.
And the 3rd treat of the day for me was Pixie the little monkey! When we saw her the last time she was shy and told us she did not like children and if we could please throw the peanuts on the top of the cage so they fall down into the cage instead of throwing them against the front of the cage, where they bounce off sometimes and fall to the ground and she can’t reach them! She was very cute and sweet when we saw her then. But this time she gave us an amazing gift! We walked up to her cage and M called her name. She came running over and really did seem to be thrilled to see us! So much so that she sat down right in front of us and began to “perform”! She would raise her eye brows up and down and with her flat top that alone was adorable!! But she added a little tongue wiggle and placed both of her arms across her chest and stood on her hind legs and did a little dance which included ducking her head and putting it to one side and made a cute little noise. This performance went on and on and it seemed the more we talked to her the more she played!
At one point I called Brother Bill and asked him to come over to see her and as soon as Pixie saw him, she stopped everything and turned into a very normal little money and walked to the back of the cage and started grooming herself. She would not make eye contact and stayed there while we walked away. Later before we left I walked up to her cage and there was a girl there who was also getting a “performance” and Pixie continued to perform when I walked up so we started talking and it turns out the girl used to work at the zoo and knows Pixie well and continues to visit her when she can. She said Pixie does her act for people she knows and trusts, so she much have remembered M and I and that was our reward!
With Cinnamon’s permission, I offered him Reiki from a short distance while he lay on the grass. He continued to cough throughout the entire fifteen minute session. The following day his person commented that he seemed to be doing better. Cinnamon asked for hands-on Reiki this time. His coughing was only intermittent throughout the fifteen minute session. He shared with me that his stomach was feeling poisoned as well as he was being poisoned. I silently acknowledged his statement. While offering Reiki for him, I noticed a strong pull of energy from my back to the Diamond T truck behind me.
As I was speaking, I noticed that both cats were lying together in the grass. I sat down a few feet from them to offer Reiki again. I could get a sense that their bodies were literally merging with Mother Earth’s energy to become one. I also felt a tremendous sense of grounding energy for myself as I sat in the Reiki space with them. It was a very humbling and powerful sensation.
I recently had the pleasure of spending a weekend doing Reiki with rescued horses at BrightHaven Animal Rescue. Located in the Northern California town of Santa Rosa, BrightHaven is an amazing place, and I find myself wanting to tell everyone about it. First and foremost, it is a home for senior, disabled and terminally ill animals. All the animals there are at least 16 years old; the horses are all over the age of 26. Founded by Gail and Richard Pope in 1990, BrightHaven is their home also. Indoors you will see many senior cats and dogs – some partially paralyzed. Some of the dogs can be seen tearing around the back yard on their “wheels,” almost as fast as any dog you’ve ever seen.
A goat also makes her home at BrightHaven, as well as some ducks, geese, and I just don’t even know who else. It is truly a safe haven for all.
As someone who has been struggling with health issues of my aging cats for the last several years, I am amazed and humbled by the efforts of Gail and Richard. I know first hand how difficult it is when your animals get older and have special needs. I’m sure many of you do, too. How they care for so many “special needs” animals through the end of life transition is beyond my capacity to imagine. And the care and love that the animals at BrightHaven receive is beyond description.
A lovely, beautiful tanned coloured American Pit Bull had just been delivered to the shelter where I volunteered. She had been found wandering the streets, and the person who found her, delivered her to us. She was named Chloe and it was obvious “Chloe” had recently had pups but she was in excellent condition.
You may remember Harley from his appearance in my first book Animal Reiki. When I first met Harley, in 2005, he was still up and walking around, but a bit unstable on his feet. For the last few years he has been a paraplegic. So many students would come to work with him and think, “Oh that poor pig can’t walk.” But over and over again after sitting with him for a Reiki treatment they would come back and say, “Oh this may sound a bit strange but I feel so happy after sitting with that pig. Something about him, he is just so joyful.” Yes so many people felt so happy after being with Harley. This was one of his biggest gifts to this world, I think.
I’ll never forget the day when I brought my daughter Indigo to visit Harley (she was then about 2 and ½). We went out into his pasture, and of course when he saw us he began his series of welcoming oinks and snorts. He was always so social and happy to have visitors! Indigo was just enthralled! She immediately sat down a few feet away from him and began singing. I had never heard her do this before—she just made up a long song with lovely lyrics such as, “I love you Harley,” “You are such a nice pig,” “It’s fun to sit here with you Harley.” She would sing her lyrics and then take a break—and Harley would oink back to her appreciatively, as if he too were singing to her some special pig lyrics. We sat there for over an hour together with him that day; it is such a beautiful memory, I will never forget it. To see his beautiful heart touch a child so much; what an amazing pig!
Amos is a fun and amusing Spider Monkey whose role is to provide entertainment at the sanctuary and at various shows. He shares an enclosure with another monkey named Rosie. Our exercise was to sit with the animals while doing one of the traditional Japanese meditations. So, I sat facing the enclosure with my chair at a slight angle. I invited both Amos and Rosie to join me in the space of Reiki energy. While Rosie did everything she could to disrupt what was happening, Amos expressed an intense curiosity in me and in the energy.
Before C.A.R.E., I had not yet had an opportunity to share Reiki with birds. A grouping of macaws and cockatoos were most happy to provide me with this experience. I sat next to their enclosure with my chair pointed away at a slight angle, and then invited all of them to join me in a space of Reiki energy. My intention was to clear my mind, remove all expectations and just “Be Reiki” with these lovely macaws and cockatoos for 20-30 minutes. A couple of the cockatoos came forward right away and sat on the perch nearest me for the entire time while the other cockatoos moved forward and then flew back taking turns connecting with me and the energy.
At the same time, the green macaw Zazoo was climbing up and down the fence right beside me. Each time he was at about eye level with me, he would quietly say “hello” to get my attention. As I sat there “Being Reiki” with these sweet birds, the ebb and flow of their movement in the Reiki space was so peaceful; it felt like a well-choreographed dance. Their movements were so smooth and balanced; they were in perfect harmony. As we came to the end of our time together, I realized that all of the birds had settled into their chosen spot in the dance formation. We were all “Being Reiki” together, sharing a space of harmony and tranquility.
One of our assignments was to pair up with another class member, sit with an animal and offer each other a head and shoulder Reiki treatment. My partner and I sat with Lola, a sweet North American Black Bear. As I began to offer Reiki to my partner, I invited Lola to join us in the energy. At first Lola sat back against a wood box in the middle of her enclosure checking us out and deciding if she wanted to be a part of what we were doing. Over the course of the treatment, as Lola slowly inched forward, I could feel her beginning to connect, the energy becoming warmer and warmer as the connection deepened. Lola eventually moved up closer and sat on a metal tube that was next to the fence in the corner. At some point, my partner and I traded places. As we continued, we could feel the energy becoming stronger and more intense. By the end of our time, Lola had climbed on the fence while sitting on the edge of her pool to get as close to us as possible. She was sprawled out almost as wide she could get and moving her head back and forth in delight. She had truly relaxed and let go; she was very content and at peace.
Thank you to Lola for this beautiful experience. By connecting with my classmate and me as we offered Reiki to each other, Lola helped us create a more open space of healing, of harmony, of balance that we were all sharing together. As our connection with Lola deepened so did our connection with the energy and with each other. By inviting Lola to join us in Reiki, we not only enhanced our human-human treatments, we also assisted Lola in whatever healing she needed at that moment.
My bestie, Laurie, had posted on Facebook that her friend, Greg, had been in an accident and flipped his SUV. His Husky puppy, Argus who was with him in the vehicle, had bolted out of a broken window and ran away from the scene. Greg was taken to the hospital to make sure he was okay and had no idea where Argus had gone.
My relationship to Bootsie has also been especially close ever since we first made eye contact while I was mall walking almost fourteen years ago. There she was in the pet shop window, an adorable 8-week-old tuxedo kitten, playing with half a dozen or so other kittens. When I stopped to look at the kittens, she stopped playing to gaze at me and I gazed back. We bonded in that moment, like Super Glue.
I love twilight! No, not the movie…that time of day when the sun meets the moon and everything is bathed in muted colors. It often feels to be a very mystical time of day and so is my favorite time for walking on the mountain. Secretive wildlife is often found at this time a day and I am always on the lookout. I have had the good fortune to see a den of fox kits, pileated woodpeckers, owls, grouse, baby porcupines and of course, deer. Currently, we have three deer roaming the mountain. I’m thrilled to see they made it through hunting season and they look nice and healthy for the upcoming winter.